What are Charlotte's Top Development Busts of All Time?

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Seeing The Park debacle continue followed by a story about the Epicentre retailers complaining about the lack of customers due to the 210 Trade demise made me think about the history of local development and what happened when projects really went wrong. Thinking of projects that were significantly built and never completed or completed and only briefly opened.

My initial rankings:

#1 Heritage Tower - Maybe not the biggest in size but certainly in longevity

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Well, I would put Cityfair up there, even though the building managed to stick around for 10 years or so before the Hearst Tower replaced it. It was pretty much considered a white elephant from day one. Also, the companion nightclub that was to go in the Carolina Theater was a bust. They demo'd the lobby away for the new nightclub and then lost financing. At least that's how I think it went down. and now 20 years later the site is still a mess.

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City Fair was probably my next one, but never knew a whole a lot about it first hand. I do rememebr watch the ribbon cutting ceremony on the news. Even on opening day seemed like even then the newscasters were smirking a lil when they said how great it was.

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I'm hoping the Morningside development doesn't get added to this list. There has been a whole lot of inactivity and rumors of people pulling out. I have even heard the main development company is trying to sell the majority of the property.

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I'm hoping the Morningside development doesn't get added to this list. There has been a whole lot of inactivity and rumors of people pulling out. I have even heard the main development company is trying to sell the majority of the property.

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There was a huge development planned for Harrisburg, just up the road from UNCC that would've added 2000+ homes and two golf courses to the land between 49 and 29. Then the company went bankrupt and POOF, it hasn't been touched since.

There's another huge scar around here (Cabarrus County) on Rocky River Road where Ryan Homes was going to build a bunch of homes and a town center near CC Griffin Middle School. Then that whole project went belly-up and left 5-7 homeowners in a completely unfinished neighborhood. All that remains is the vast area partially graded and left to erode into Rocky River. How would you like to be those few homes in a desert of crab grass and empty space?

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I'm worried Epicenter could be added to this list. Currently there are no plans to shut down the businesses whose permits have expired, because Epicenter is "too big to fail" perhaps? However, no new operating permits given out until all of the issues are fixed, and I'm worried Ghazi could go belly up before that happens.

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A bust that comes to mind for me isn't exactly the failure of a project, but the failure of a location. 300 South Tryon.

How many times has a project there been cancelled? I can remember the Barkley was going to go there (in the 80s?) And of course the most recent proposal for the site is on hold~or will it ever resurrect itself. The location on Tryon is so fabulous. Hard to believe something isn't already standing there.

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I recall that First Union had floated the idea of a 120 floor monster of a building back in the early 90's. I was intrigued with a building large enough to be seen from Harrisburg. Does anyone have a link to what that sucker was going to look like?

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I recall that First Union had floated the idea of a 120 floor monster of a building back in the early 90's. I was intrigued with a building large enough to be seen from Harrisburg. Does anyone have a link to what that sucker was going to look like?